


Liebes-Lied

by windychimes



Category: Pyre (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Post-Game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-07
Updated: 2017-10-07
Packaged: 2019-01-10 02:42:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12289506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/windychimes/pseuds/windychimes
Summary: Your love be damned, Volfred.Volfred turns the words in his head, prods them, but doesn’t dissect them completely, not yet. Now is not the time for that.“I suppose I deserved that,” Volfred says out loud, to no one in particular.





	Liebes-Lied

_How shall I keep my soul_  
from touching yours? How shall  
I lift it over other things?  
Ah, I would like to lodge it  
in the dark with some lost thing  
on some foreign silent place  
that does not tremble, when your depths stir. __  
  


____

There’s no talk after that last harrowing Rite. The hall of Mount Alodiel is quiet, silent save for a chill night’s breeze passing through. The last of the stars are gone and the moon hangs gloomy and dark, its previously radiant light dimmed to a hazy pallor. Once the Reader is gone, so is Oralech; he disappeared as they all watched the last fading glimmers of the Shimmer Pool. _Your love be damned, Volfred_. Volfred turns the words in his head, prods them, but doesn’t dissect them completely, not yet. Now is not the time for that.

____

“I suppose I deserved that,” Volfred says out loud, to no one in particular.

____

The faintest glow of the sun heralds the morning dawn and they return to the Blackwagon, Volfred, Bertrude, and Ti’zo, each of them silent, processing, exploring the potential paths before them. Volfred sleeps fitfully that night, ghosts of memories past weaving their way into his dreams. He dreams of Erisa, her roguish grin, her unrestrained anger, her desire for change; he dreams of Tariq, standing back on the plateau of Mount Alodiel, his eyes growing dimmer, Celeste fading with him; he dreams of that which he both wants and does not want most, of late, warm evenings spent passing his ( _their_ ) pipe back and forth, of cool mornings spent too close to the fire ( _and each other_ ), trying to keep warm.

____

There is not much talk in the morning because there is not much to say. Volfred and his companions go about their days in near silence, passing only few words between each other. _Your love be damned, your love be damned, your love be damned_. He’s still not quite ready to open those words, even as they repeat through his head. He may not have actively taken part in Oralech’s first betrayal, but is second is clear now; to put his love of his country above all else… his love be damned, indeed. It was necessary, but sometimes necessity has complications.

____

It is on the fifth day, while Bertrude is out gathering herbs and Ti’zo is searching for food, that Oralech reappears. The Blackwagon has not yet moved; it would not have been difficult to find it. He shows up silently while Volfred is sitting inside, thumbing through the Book of Rites. Oralech says nothing until Volfred looks up and notices him, and even after that he makes no sound. Volfred swallows his urge to speak first; this is Oralech’s time. This is what he needs.

____

“You,” Oralech begins, his voice surprising neutral, only barely tinged with his previous acidic rage. “Why do you stay here?”

____

Volfred closes the Book and regards Oralech a moment; he looks much the same, but somehow even more tired. He’s still tense, tightened with anger, but it’s milder now. There’s not quite so much stress in his shoulders, and he hunches slightly. His posture never was very good.

____

It’s a strange thought to have and Volfred almost laughs, but now is not the time for that. Instead he stands and walks over to Oralech, meeting his gaze. Not challenging him, but not backing down, either. “There is not yet reason to leave,” he says mildly. “What brings you back here? I had thought…”

____

_I had thought you would never want to see this place again_. Volfred does not allow himself the luxury of being open and chides himself for being so forward. He has not earned the right to ask questions, not yet.

____

Oralech gazes around the Blackwagon, at the trinkets and travel items. It’s the same as it was the last time he was here, but now it’s emptier, quieter, near desolate. He shifts his gaze back to Volfred. “I could never stay away from you for long,” he says, and the vulnerability of it surprises the both of them. He grits his teeth, but there’s no taking it back now; the words linger in the air between them, hang heavily on their shoulders. He says no more, and the silence grows tense and tight, bubbling in both of them in a manner they don’t dare name.

____

“…Do I have your permission,” Volfred begins, each word cautious and measured, “to ask forgiveness?”

____

Oralech snorts, his lip curling up in something not quite a sneer. “How bold of you.” There’s a deep tinge of amusement to his voice. “Do you think you deserve my forgiveness?”

____

“No,” Volfred says, before he has time to think better of it. It seems neither of them can keep up their shields today. He pauses, shifts his words in his mouth, tries to come up with something to say but can only manage, “Can I ever earn it?”

____

Oralech eyes him, gauges his sincerity; after a long moment, his sneer turns more to a smile. “Perhaps,” he mumbles. “What do you think is a fitting apology?”

____

Volfred drops to one knee and bows his head without hesitation. “What I did was necessary,” he begins, “but my love of my country does not mean I have no love for you. This was _our_ Plan; we were both a part of it. It came from us, from you. You were the light behind the idea. I needed to see it through. But it does not mean you mean nothing to me.” He hesitates a moment, voice nearly breaking, and adds, “…My love be damned if it goes to the country without you.”

____

Again, Oralech says nothing, and the hush of the Blackwagon works its way painfully into Volfred’s bark. Just as the tension reaches an edge, Oralech leans over and puts his face on the top of Volfred’s head. “It’s a start,” he mumbles. “I shall consider your words.”

____

Volfred closes his eyes, lets Oralech’s long hair drape over him, a veil of protection. “Will you stay here for a while? It’s… it’s much too quiet, these days.”

____

“…For a while,” Oralech returns. “Perhaps we should… stay like this.”

____

“Perhaps,” Volfred mumbles in return, and they do indeed stay like that until Bertrude and Ti’zo return. Oralech slips out before they can see him, and Volfred says nothing of the encounter to them; he’s not ready for questions, not quite yet. He suspects Oralech will return soon enough, and things can be answered then.

____

He does return soon enough, just three days later. Once again it is while Bertrude and Ti’zo are out. Volfred is reading when he notices Oralech enter; he stands and smiles, ever so softly, swallowing the true excitement crackling in his veins “It is good to see you again,” he offers mildly, not daring to step over his bounds. It is best to let Oralech choose their level of intimacy, for now.

____

Oralech only nods in reply. “I have considered your apology,” he says, blunt as ever. He never was one to dance around an issue. Volfred dares not push Oralech to continue, not now, not even as an excited, apprehensive tension swirls in his core.

____

“…I have decided to accept,” he says after a long moment, breaking his silence once he could see Volfred’s tension reaching a tipping point. “Your shadow… your Reader reached out to me. They showed me what I was blind to… I realized then, you had no part in what Erisa did.” He pauses, and smiles, just a bit, and his next words are nearly a laugh. “Your love for your country be damned, but I cannot blame you. We both did what we had to.”

____

He opens his arms to Volfred. “Come to me once more. We shall stand shoulder-to-shoulder down here. We have changed the Commonwealth, we can change the Downside.”

____

Volfred all but falls into Oralech’s embrace like a tree tipping in a forest. He holds Oralech might tighter than needed and flowers bloom beneath his collar far too quickly. Oralech buries his face in them and inhales their warm scent deeply; for a moment, it is like long ago, when, on late nights after the Rites Volfred would open his flowers for Oralech so he could breathe them in and relax. The spiced, earthy aroma always did much to calm his nerves. Volfred runs his fingers through Oralech’s hair, the long silver strands tangled and messy as ever. Oralech sinks into Volfred and now it is him falling into Volfred’s embrace. He’s needed this, much more than he’ll ever admit, much more than either of them ever realized.

____

Outside, Volfred hears Bertrude and Ti’zo return. “They’re back,” he murmurs into Oralech’s hair. “Would you like to stay?”

____

Oralech sighs and kisses Volfred’s cheek. The move surprises them both, but is it not rebuked. “I suppose I should. We all have many questions.”

____

The two wait a moment longer before untangling from each other. Cautiously, Volfred takes Oralech’s hand, and when Oralech does not push him away, he intertwines their fingers. “Shall we?” he asks.

____

“Let us,” Oralech returns, and they head outside the Blackwagon, much to the surprise and delight of Bertrude and Ti’zo. There are many questions to be answered and asked, and now Volfred feels like they’re ready for both.

____

**Author's Note:**

> the poem is Rilke's "Liebes-Lied" and the translation used is by Edward Snow.
> 
> and special thanks to venhediss for editing.


End file.
